Professor Peter Convey from the British Antarctic Survey says that because of these unique conditions, around 60 per cent of Antarctic invertebrate species are found nowhere else in the world.

"They have clearly not arrived on the continent recently, but must have been there for millions of years. How they survived past ice ages - the most recent of which ended less than 20,000 years ago - has long puzzled scientists," he said.

But the research comes with a warning.

Dr Fraser says the study shows that warmer parts of the Antarctic allow more life.

She says if other areas across Antarctica start to warm then more species will be able to flourish there, including those that drift to the continent by sea or on visiting humans.

"As the climate warms, ice is going to melt in areas of Antarctica which will free up ice-free space," Dr Fraser said.

"The most likely species to colonise this new space are going to be species that come in on people, on the vessels that go down to Antarctica."

Dr Fraser says a rapid warming period will threaten Antarctic species more than millennia of ice ages.

"Remember that we're going into a period now of warmer temperatures than we've seen for millions of years," she said.

"So there will be less ice in Antarctica than there has been potentially for millions of years."

However one of the study's other researchers Professor Steven Chown from Monash University says the research findings could help guide conservation efforts in Antarctica.

"Knowing where the hotspots of diversity are will help us to protect them as human-induced environmental changes continue to affect Antarctica," he said.